Patients must be oriented to person, place, and time and able to give written informed consent.

Patients must have had an acute episode of cryptococcal meningitis that was documented by recovery and identification of cryptococcus from lumbar cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture within 4 months of study entry.

Adequate therapy will consist of 6 - 16 weeks of treatment with amphotericin B alone, amphotericin B + oral flucytosine, or a period of the combination followed by amphotericin alone. Adequate regimens will include:

A minimum total amphotericin B dose of 2 grams as monotherapy.

6 weeks of flucytosine at 150 mg/kg/day (or levels of 20 to 100 mcg/ml demonstrated) plus amphotericin B at an average daily dose of at least 0.3 mg/kg/day or to a total dose of 1 gram.

After a shorter period of the combination amphotericin/flucytosine therapy, an additional Y grams of amphotericin B monotherapy will make therapy adequate where Y = 2 gm-(X weeks combination therapy / 3 weeks).

For example, a patient who received 3 weeks of combination followed by amphotericin alone would need an additional 2 gm - 3 weeks/3 weeks = 1 gm of amphotericin B.

Patients need not be receiving amphotericin B at the time of randomization but must begin study maintenance therapy within 3 weeks of cessation of primary amphotericin B therapy.

Choosing to participate in a study is an important personal decision. Talk with your doctor and family members or friends about deciding to join a study.
To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the Contacts provided below.
For general information, see Learn About Clinical Studies.

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00002294